Researching a speech about Poland I came across the wise words of Thomas Banacek, a 1970s American TV Polish/American freelance insurance investigator who solved all sorts of improbable mysteries in part by delivering droll proverbs supposedly of Polish origin:

When the wolf is chasing your sleigh, toss him a raisin cookie but don’t stop to see if he eats it

Only the centipede can hear all the footsteps of his uncle

A wolf that takes a peasant to supper probably won’t need any breakfast

Though the hippopotamus has no sting on its tail, the wise man would still rather be sat on by a bee

If your socks are not in your shoes, don’t look for them in Heaven

Wise words indeed.